This year’s CEPA Forum, the leading annual transatlantic security conference in Washington D.C., featured a marquee event spotlighting the Andrássy National Security Fellowship at the reception of the Forum’s invitation-only VIP Dinner.
Miklós Lázár, Ilona Teleki, Krisztián Jójárt, Anna Smith Lacey, and Peter Doran at CEPA Forum’s Andrássy Reception
The 10th CEPA Forum took place on September 24 at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center with theme of “Winning the 21st Century–Allied Strength and Solidarity.” Over 300 guests attended the Forum, which has become the single largest and most prestigious annual gathering of CEE officials, experts, and industry leaders in the United States.
The Forum’s discussion topics included the challenges facing NATO and EU cooperation in a time of heightened state competition, the strategic benefits of looking beyond NATO’s baseline requirements to improve collective defense, energy security, and developments on the technology frontline with hybrid threats. Click here to watch the recap video.
The CEPA Forum included a 30 minute “Spotlight on Ukraine,” delivered by HIF Board Member Kurt Volker, Special Representative for Ukraine Negotiations of the United States. The address was entitled “Challenges and the Road Ahead: Insights from the Special Representative,” and focused on the most recent developments on the war in Ukraine, what has been accomplished, what has fallen short, and what the future holds.
HIF Board Member Kurt Volker, Special Representative for Ukraine Negotiations of the US delivers Spotlight on Ukraine analysis
For the first time, this year’s program featured the Andrássy Fellowship Reception which recognized HIF as a leader in promoting Atlanticist values by strengthening the understanding and cooperation between Hungary and the Unites States, emphasized the spirit and vision of Hungarian statesman Gyula Andrássy as an architect of the European system and demonstrated how Andrássy’s legacy endures today through efforts such as the Andrássy National Security Fellowship at CEPA.
Current fellowship recipients Krisztián Jójárt and Miklós K. Lázár were introduced by Ilona Teleki, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer at CEPA, who also underlined CEPA’s commitment to training the next generation of Atlanticist scholars in the region.
“The Andrassy Fellowship was borne out of a concern that America was losing the support of younger generations in Central Europe. The Andrassy Fellowship at CEPA therefore aims to foster the understanding of the continuing importance of the transatlantic relationship in this day and age as new threats from the east once again darken Europe’s door.”
At CEPA, Krisztián Jójárt has been researching Russia’s asymmetric warfare strategy based on the critical evaluation of the writings of prominent Russian military thinkers. Miklós K. Lázár, a PhD candidate in Oxford, is the newest arrival to the program. His research interests lie in Geopolitics, Market Power, Standards Regimes, Economic Nationalism, and EU Energy Security.
HIF Executive Director Anna Smith Lacey speaking at the Andrassy Fellowship Reception
Anna Smith Lacey, Executive Director of the foundation stressed HIF’s commitment to invest in talent to foster US-Hungarian ties.
“Hungary has an impressive pool of young scholars to choose from and we hope that this fellowship will be a strong vehicle of churning out a cadre of young Atlanticists who will be character-driven policy innovators and decision makers of the Western world order that we all believe in.”
In the spirit of Count Andrássy she noted that CEE-US relations need leadership that is brave and bold in character, sensitive to national interests, confident in the strength of our common cultural and civilizational achievements, but conscious of how fragile they are in the face of belligerent powers. She said
“Alliances are only as strong as the character of the people who form them, and “winning the 21st century” will only be possible if we are manning the barricades with the best and the brightest the next generation has to offer.”
photo credit: CEPA
